A Bend in the Road

Best-selling author Sarah Weinman loves true crime and loves wondering why we all love true crime. Her books probe these questions and more, bolstered by impeccable research, immensely readable prose and, at the heart of the story, the desire to present the humanity of the subjects, not the perpetrators, of the crimes. Join Roberta as she talks with Sarah from her home in Brooklyn about her books The Real Lolita, Scoundrel, & Women Crime Writers of the 1940 & 1950s and the reasons why we are all so obsessed with true crime. Things discussed in the episode:Sarah Weinman’s WebsiteSerial PodcastNew York Times Crime ColumnEtan Patz CaseFiring Line with William F. Buckley Jr.: “The Edgar Smith Story: Part I,” Firing Line broadcast records, Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Program S0029Dorothy B. Hughes- In A Lonely Place (Amazon)Crime Reads Article: "In A Lonely Place and Postwar America"Robin GiglStephen SpotswoodDanya KukafkaEpisode Credits:A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias Rosner Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias Rosner Our Digital Media producers are Elias Rosner and Olivia EstebanLogo and Website created by Parker GaidimasOriginal Music is written and performed by Diane SimsThe clip from Firing Line with William F. Buckley is copyrighted by the Hoover Institution.Special thanks to Sarah for being with us today.Transition music via https://www.FesliyanStudios.com

When one shares a story, they can become a part of a healing and empowering experience. Stories are powerful - cathartic, emotive, and full of truths, hidden or not - and our guests this week know that quite well. Nina is a life coach and the author of a new book Creek Music: What a Year in the Woods Taught Me About Seasons, Surrender and Joy. Her son Noah Taylor is a 28 year old café manager, storyteller and an aspiring writer. They are frequent performers at the The Moth StorySLAMS in Philly. Join host Roberta Panjwani as she talks with them about their experiences on the stage, how they got there, and the life events that shaped what they tell and how they tell it.Links for things discussed in the episode:Nina Groop's WebsiteThe MothEpisode Credits:A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias Rosner Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias Rosner Original Music is written and performed by Diane SimsOur Digital Media producers are Elias Rosner and Sabrina Garcia Logo and Website created by Parker GaidimasThe excerpt you heard at the beginning of the episode is from Nina's new book: Creek Music: What a Year in the Woods Taught Me about Seasons, Surrender & Joy.

Director Maite Alberdi had a great idea for a new film, one that merged her love of film noir with documentaries, so she began working as an assistant to a Chilean private eye. But when the lead detective broke his hip before filming, she wound up making a very different film - a film that earned her a nomination for a 2021 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. Join Roberta as she sits down with Maite to discuss The Mole Agent, filmmaking and the importance of community during any season of life.Links for things discussed in the episode:Micromundo ProductionsMaite and The Mole AgentMaite’s new project: The Eternal MemoryEpisode Credits:A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane Sims.Consulting for this episode done by Diane Sims.Our Assistant Producer is Elias Rosner.Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias Rosner.Our Editor is Elias Rosner.Original Music is written and performed by Diane Sims.Our Digital Media producers are Elias Rosner and Sabrina Garcia.Logo and website created by Parker Gaidimas.We are grateful to Maite Alberdi and Daniela Sandoval and to Micromundo Productions for permission to include audio clips from The Mole Agent.Original music from The Mole Agent composed by Vincent Van Warmerdam. Additional music composed by Jose Luis Perales ["Te Quiero"]

As a youth growing up in Ireland, and in the tall shadow of the Catholic Church, Pádraig Ó Tuama grappled with questions of acceptance and identity.  In part 2 of our interview with the poet and theologian, we dig into those questions and what innate sensibility gave him the fortitude to step into those headwinds, instead of turning away, with a brief stop in the land of knitable television near the end. For those just joining us, Pádraig is an Irish poet and the host of the hugely popular podcast Poetry Unbound - now on its sixth season - as well as a theologian and conflict mediator. This episode is guest hosted by Diane Sims. Links mentioned in the show:Padraig's WebsiteThe TenX9 ProjectCorrymeelaMorton DeutschBilly CollinsSix Feet Under“If You’re Going To Look Like a Wolf They Have to Love You More Than Fear You”Episode CreditsA Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias Rosner Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias Rosner Original Music is written and performed by Diane SimsOur Digital Media producers are Elias Rosner and Sabrina Garcia Logo and Website created by Parker GaidimasSpecial thanks to Pádraig Ó Tuama for talking with us today and to Shannon Hearn for her help. 

What power does poetry have to help us navigate the challenges of life? How do we approach art and how does it approach us? Join our guest host Diane Sims for a journey through these questions, and many others, with Pádraig Ó Tuama as he shares his relationship with art, reconciliation and the ongoing road toward finding ourselves in an episode so big, we had to split it into two. For those new to Pádraig's work, he is an Irish poet and the host of the hugely popular podcast Poetry Unbound - now on its sixth season - as well as a theologian and conflict mediator. Part 2 will be available on October 26.Links mentioned in the show:Padraig's WebsiteThe TenX9 ProjectCorrymeelaMorton Deutsch Billy CollinsEpisode CreditsA Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias Rosner Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias Rosner Original Music is written and performed by Diane SimsOur Digital Media producer is Elias Rosner and Sabrina Garcia Logo and Website created by Parker GaidimasPlease join us again in a week for Part 2 of Diane’s conversation with Pádraig Ó Tuama.

Before Curtis Duffy was a world-renowned, Michelin-starred chef and restaurant owner, he was a troubled youth, left alone as a teenager after experiencing unimaginable tragedies. That is, until he took a mandatory middle school home economics class, introducing Curtis to the kitchen, his gift and his purpose.Join Roberta as she sits down with Curtis from his new Chicago-based restaurant Ever to talk about those early years and his rise to the top, indomitable work ethic and passion for motorcycles, tattoos and martial arts.Special Event: On Nov 2, 2022 at 7:00pm (EST), the Ridgewood Library will show the 2016 documentary “For Grace,” which chronicles the creation of Curtis’s former restaurant and tells the riveting story of how the chef’s turbulent past shaped the person he is today. A live Q&A with directors Mark Helenowsk and Kevin Pang will follow the screening. This event is offered at the Ridgewood Library and via Zoom. Please visit ridgewoodlibrary.org for details and the Zoom linkFor the curious, here are just a few of Curtis' accolades: Ever was awarded two Michelin stars in the 2022 Guide, Grace (his previous restaurant) earned three Michelin stars, four years in a row (2015-2018), two Michelin stars at Avenues at The Peninsula Hotel Chicago, Forbes Travel Guide’s Five-Star rating, AAA’s Five-Diamond rating, and the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef, Great Lakes Award in 2016.Episode Credits:A Bend in the Road from the Ridgewood Public Library was made possible by a grant from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities, a state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias Rosner Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias Rosner Original Music is written and performed by Diane SimsOur Digital Media producer is Elias Rosner and Sabrina Garcia Logo and Website created by Parker GaidimasCover Photo of Curtis Duffy by Michael Muser We would like to thank Curtis Duffy for spending time with us today and Melissa Harris for helping us to put this interview together.

How did one tiny octopus change so many lives?To combat burnout and depression, filmmaker & diver Craig Foster had taken up diving in the icy waters of South Africa's Kelp Forest where he met one very special Common Octopus. A year of observing and filming the octopus' short life later, he sent the film to fellow documentarian Pippa Ehrlich, who crafted the footage into a meditation on the importance of wildlife and a moving tale about her friend and his octopus teacher.Join Roberta as she chats with Pippa about the Academy-Award winning documentary, her work with the Sea Change Project, and some of her favorite advice from Jane Goodall.This episode was originally recorded as part of the Ridgewood Public Library's Reel Voices program on July 14, 2021. It has been lightly edited for clarity.Episode Credits:A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsOriginal Music is written and performed by Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias Rosner Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias Rosner Our Digital Media producers are Sabrina Garcia and Elias RosnerLogo and Website created by Parker GaidimasVery special thanks to our guest Pippa Ehrlich. My Octopus Teacher is a trademark and copyright of Off the Fence & the Sea Change Project. All rights reserved.My Octopus Teacher can be streamed on Netflix. The film’s tie-in book Underwater Wild: My Octopus Teacher's Extraordinary World by Craig Foster and Ross Frylinck is available at the Ridgewood Library and wherever you get your books. The children’s picture book version Journey Under the Sea comes out this October.Sound effects used include “Underwater Ambience” by Fission9

Olivia Barkley loved diving. She ate, slept and breathed it, so much that her one dream was to get a full diving scholarship at a Division 1 school. After a serious accident on a dive left her with a life-altering concussion, the dream vanished…and then reformed in an unexpected new way.Join Roberta as she sits down with Olivia to discuss how she managed the many different types of loss, how she found a new identity, and what it’s like to run an Ultra Marathon (50km!).And did we mention she sings too?Episode Credits:A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsConsulting for this episode done by Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias RosnerOur Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias RosnerOur Digital Media producer is Sabrina GarciaLogo and Website created by Parker GaidimasOriginal Music is written and performed by Diane SimsConsulting for this episode done by Diane SimsAdditional consultation from Nancy Carswell and Andrea Panjwani.Thanks to our guest Olivia Barkley for sharing her story–and, yes, for singing for us today. All I Know So Far is written by Alecia Moore, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul and Cover Me In Sunshine is written by Maureen Anne McDonald and Amy Rose Allen 

Florence Williams is a contributing editor for Outside magazine and the New York Times bestselling author of Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey (2022) and The Nature Fix (2017). For the unfamiliar, these books ask questions like: Why do the emotional effects of heartbreak manifest physically? and; how can exposure to nature make: us healthier, not only physically but mentally, emotionally, and socially too?In this episode, Florence joins Roberta from her home in Washington, D.C. to discuss these questions, the difficult life changes that underpin them and how, to get us all outside, she claimed Oscar Wilde’s famously generous definition of nature: “Nature is where the birds fly around uncooked.”Episode Credits:A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsConsulting for this episode done by Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is me, Elias RosnerOur Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias RosnerOur Digital Media producer is Sabrina GarciaLogo and Website created by Parker GaidimasOriginal Music is written and performed by Diane SimsSpecial thanks to our guest, Florence Williams. For more information about Florence Williams’ books, podcasts, retreats and more, please visit florencewilliams.comSound effects used include "Footsteps, Dry Leaves, G.wav" by InspectorJ (www.jshaw.co.uk) of Freesound.org

J.D. Jackson is an award-winning audiobook narrator with 400 credits to his name and counting. An 2020 inductee into AudioFile Magazine's Golden Voices Hall of Fame, J.D. has plenty of experience behind a mic. For this inaugural episode of A Bend in the Road, join Roberta as she talks with J.D. about the teacher that changed his life, the process of interpreting books of all genres, and his magic remedy for keeping his voice in top form (hint: it involves a lot of licorice tea.) And who knows? Maybe that recipe will lead to your own bend in the road.Follow us on Instagram @bendintheroadpodcast or at bendintheroad.org for updates and the latest episodes.Credits:A Bend in the Road is written, hosted and produced by Roberta Panjwani and created by Roberta Panjwani and Diane SimsOur Assistant Producer is Elias Rosner Our Technical Directors and Audio Engineers are Charles Gallo and Elias RosnerOur Editor is Elias Rosner Our Digital Media producer is Parker GaidimasLogo and Website created by Parker GaidimasOriginal Music is written and performed by Diane SimsAudiobooks narrated by J.D. are available to borrow or download at your library and on Audible.